Author

Adam Goldstein

Adam Goldstein

Adam Goldstein is the D.C. Bureau intern for States Newsroom. Goldstein is a graduate student at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, studying digital reporting. He is originally from San Francisco, and loves swimming, cooking, and the San Francisco 49ers.

U.S. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack testifies during a U.S. Senate Ag Committee oversight hearing March 16, 2023. (Committee video screenshot)

USDA secretary battles with U.S. House Republicans over costs of federal nutrition programs

By: - March 28, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans tussled with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Democratic committee members over work requirements in federal nutrition programs as well as spending levels for those programs at a Tuesday hearing.  Republican members of the House Agriculture Committee charged Vilsack with evading bipartisan oversight in the USDA’s 2021 redesign of the Thrifty […]

Dustin Schmidt, a South Dakota rancher and member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, speaks to the U.S. Senate Indian Affairs Committee on March 22, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Screenshot from committee video)

Native American agricultural leaders detail farm bill priorities at U.S. Senate hearing

By: - March 24, 2023

WASHINGTON — A roundtable of Native American agricultural leaders at a recent U.S. Senate hearing lobbied for increased sovereignty and social justice in the coming farm bill by expanding tribes’ jurisdiction over U.S. Department of Agriculture programs.  It’s called “638” authority and refers to Public Law 93-638, which gives tribes the power to manage certain […]

On March 21, 2023, President Joe Biden designated Avi Kwa Ame National Monument in southern Nevada. Located at the confluence of the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts, the national monument protects objects of historic and scientific interest, including its namesake Avi Kwa Ame – or Spirit Mountain – and the surrounding arid valleys and mountain ranges that are historically important and sacred places for several tribal nations. (Courtesy of Department of Interior)

Biden officially designates new monuments in Nevada and Texas at conservation summit

By: - March 21, 2023

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden stressed that his administration’s efforts to conserve the nation’s land and waters are an expression of fundamental American values at the White House Conservation In Action summit Tuesday afternoon.  Biden also announced the designation of two new national monuments in his address, Avi Kwa Ame National Monument in southern Nevada, […]

An aerial view of Verratti Farms LLC, a dairy and grain operation in Newfane and Gasport, New York, on May 26, 2022. (Courtesy of USDA)

Limits on foreign ownership of U.S. farmland gain support in Congress, despite skepticism

By: - March 17, 2023

WASHINGTON — Bipartisan momentum is building in Congress to restrict China and other foreign adversaries from purchasing U.S. farmland, a reflection of a similar push by some states as well as apprehension over Chinese spy balloons, rising land prices and growing international competition.  “Foreign ownership of agricultural land threatens small family farms and the overall […]

U.S. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack testifies during a U.S. Senate Ag Committee oversight hearing March 16, 2023. (Committee video screenshot)

Members of U.S. Senate agriculture panel spar with Vilsack over USDA spending, response

By: - March 16, 2023

WASHINGTON — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack bristled at complaints from both Democrats and Republicans of unchecked departmental spending and delayed support for farmers during a Thursday U.S. Senate oversight hearing. He also lobbied Congress to provide a farm bill that will balance large-scale productivity with the needs of small and mid-sized producers, a theme the […]

U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-South Dakota, questions witnesses in a hearing of the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, in the Cannon House Office Building on Feb. 28, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

South Dakota congressman advocates expansion of work requirements for federal food aid

By: - March 14, 2023

WASHINGTON — Republican South Dakota Rep. Dusty Johnson introduced a bill Tuesday aimed at expanding work requirements for federal nutrition aid, reigniting a perennial conflict over how Congress navigates both the farm bill and federal spending.  “Work is the best pathway out of poverty,” Johnson, who in his home state has talked about growing up […]

Demonstrators at the "Rally for Resilience," headed by the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, in Washington, D.C., on March 8, 2023. (Adam Goldstein/States Newsroom)

Progressive agriculture groups rally for land access, climate-smart policies in farm bill

By: - March 8, 2023

WASHINGTON — Farmers and leaders from more than 20 progressive agricultural groups gathered this week to march on the U.S. Capitol, and promote climate solutions and underserved producers as priority issues for lawmakers in the upcoming farm bill.  “As farmers, we are close to the land. We love the land. We understand the sanctity and […]

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack speaks March 6, 2023, at the National Farmers Union conference in San Francisco. (Courtesy of National Farmers Union)

U.S. agriculture secretary unveils initiatives aimed at small and midsized operations

By: - March 6, 2023

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Monday announced new steps the Department of Agriculture is taking to recenter U.S. agriculture and benefit small and midsized operations, including a proposed new “Product of USA” labeling rule and an $89 million expansion of the USDA intermediary lending program.  At the National Farmers Union conference in San Francisco, […]

The U.S. Capitol building is seen on Oct. 22, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

U.S. House Ag panel hears industry complaints on regulations, scant crop insurance

By: - February 28, 2023

WASHINGTON — Members of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee listened to agribusiness executives on Tuesday rail against federal regulations, and lobby for new markets and reinforced crop insurance programs in the panel’s first hearing of the new Congress.  With the 2018 farm bill expiring this fall, lawmakers who will shape the next version of the […]

Tom Vilsack, who at the time was U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee to head the Department of Agriculture, delivers remarks at the Queen Theater on Dec. 11, 2020, in Wilmington, Delaware. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Market innovation a path to economic equity in farming, Vilsack tells ag conference

By: - February 23, 2023

WASHINGTON – U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack urged the private sector and government officials to address inequity and promote innovation in what he called a “pivotal moment” in the nation’s history at an industry conference Thursday. In the opening session of the 99th USDA Agricultural Outlook Forum, Vilsack said new income streams and markets will […]

Butchers at Old Fashion Country Butcher process meat as they work to meet increased demand due to COVID-19 related shortages on May 21, 2020, in Santa Paula, California. (Photo by Brent Stirton/Getty Images)

USDA aims to boost independent meat packers with $59 million in grants

By: - February 21, 2023

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture beefed up its efforts to encourage competition in domestic meat and poultry supply chains on Tuesday, awarding close to $59 million in federal grants to independent processors from Idaho, Virginia, South Carolina, South Dakota and Maryland. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the funding awards during a trip to […]

An aerial view from a drone shows a combine being used to harvest the soybeans in a field at the Bardole & Sons farm on Oct. 14, 2019, in Rippey, Iowa. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

State ag officials push for on-time farm bill to fund slew of programs

By: - February 17, 2023

WASHINGTON – State agriculture officials from across the country sought this month to remind a new crop of lawmakers in Congress of their states’ needs for a robust farm bill to address a host of food issues. Members of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture gathered in Washington for their annual winter meeting […]